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UK universities are in the grip of a crisis, one that has been years in the making. At the heart of the problem is an unsustainable funding model that has seen institutions become dangerously dependent on international student fees. As the global climate shifts, with fewer overseas students choosing to study in the UK, that reliance has proven disastrous. Now, university staff are being forced to pay the price for years of short-term thinking and market-driven policies.
This addiction to high overseas tuition has left many institutions exposed. With new visa restrictions and a fall in applications, universities have seen income from international students collapse. The result is a string of budget shortfalls and panicked cost-cutting. But the blame lies not with students or staff, but with a funding system that treats education as a commodity and universities as businesses.
At the University of Bedfordshire, a predicted £5 million deficit has been blamed on falling international student numbers. This, after the university posted healthy surpluses in previous years. It is a familiar story. Across the UK, universities are plugging the gaps by cutting courses, freezing recruitment, and, most damaging of all, laying off staff.
Financial Instability and Mass Redundancies
The scale of job cuts now facing the sector is unprecedented. More than 30 universities have announced major cuts in the past year. Over 5,000 staff roles are already confirmed to go, and the final total may be closer to 10,000 if institutions follow through on planned savings. The impact on staff morale and student experience is profound. Courses are disappearing, workloads are increasing, and the quality of higher education is under threat.
At Cardiff, management has threatened to close entire departments, including nursing and music. Bangor, too, plans to shed 200 jobs to balance its books. From Edinburgh to Kingston, institutions are haemorrhaging talent. The message to staff is clear: your loyalty, experience and dedication count for little when the bottom line is in trouble.
This isn’t just a higher education issue. It’s a community issue. Universities are often the largest employers in their areas. Redundancies on this scale will have a ripple effect across local economies, affecting everything from housing to hospitality. Whole towns risk being hollowed out by a funding crisis they did not create.
Strike Action in Defence of Education
Faced with this onslaught, university workers are not taking the cuts lying down. Across the country, members of the University and College Union (UCU) are striking to defend their jobs and the future of public education.
At Brunel University, staff walked out in early April and are planning further strike days this month. The dispute began when the university announced plans to make 135 academic staff redundant. But what started as a local row has grown into a broader fight about priorities and governance. Despite making huge investments in infrastructure, Brunel management is now trying to balance the books by gutting its academic workforce. In response, UCU has launched an academic boycott of the university, urging academics and institutions to cease collaboration until the threat of compulsory redundancies is removed.
At Dundee University, the institution initially proposed cutting over 700 jobs, sparking swift and furious opposition from staff, students, and the wider community. UCU Scotland official Mary Senior described it as “academic and economic vandalism.” After weeks of pressure, the university has scaled back its proposals. As of 29 April, the number of job cuts has been reduced, and there is a commitment to avoid compulsory redundancies where possible. While this is a welcome move, the fight is far from over.
At Keele University, lecturers have begun five days of strike action in protest against job cuts. The university plans to merge the schools of humanities and social sciences, which UCU argues will result in the loss of 24 full-time jobs. Union officials reject the university’s reasoning, arguing that the financial challenges cited do not justify the redundancies. The strike action is scheduled to continue into early May.
At Durham University, management is attempting to cut £20 million from its staffing budget. Staff voted overwhelmingly for strike action, with 72 per cent backing a walkout and an even higher number supporting action short of a strike. The planned cuts would see around 200 roles go, primarily in professional services. Staff argue that management is making a choice, not responding to necessity, and are demanding a halt to forced redundancies.
At Cardiff University, planned strike action was called off after an agreement was reached to halt compulsory redundancies for the remainder of 2025. The UCU held two votes, overwhelmingly passing a motion to suspend industrial action in exchange for management’s commitment to avoid forced job losses this year. However, concerns remain about the future, as redundancies could still be implemented beyond 2025.
These are not isolated cases. UCU members are also taking or preparing action at Edinburgh, Canterbury Christ Church, Bangor, Bedfordshire, Bournemouth, Bradford, Kingston, the University of East Anglia, Newcastle, and Sheffield Hallam. The common thread is a broken funding system and university managements more willing to axe jobs than challenge the status quo.
The Real Cost of Marketisation
This crisis didn’t come out of nowhere. It is the result of decades of underfunding and marketisation. The shift toward tuition fee dependence, particularly on international students, has turned universities into risk-laden ventures. Meanwhile, senior management pay has ballooned, buildings have gone up, and yet the very people who deliver education are being pushed out.
The result is a sector that is both overstretched and under threat. Staff are expected to do more with less, while students pay more for a poorer experience. Administrative functions are hollowed out, academic departments are merged or shut, and long-standing staff are replaced with short-term contracts or not replaced at all.
The irony is that many of these institutions were thriving not long ago. But they were built on shaky ground. When international student numbers drop or inflation bites, there is no safety net. The government has refused to step in with meaningful support, even as devolved administrations in Scotland and Wales have begun offering emergency funds.
Solidarity and Resistance
In the face of this, workers are fighting back. The UCU’s “Stop the Cuts: Fund Higher Education NOW!” campaign is building momentum. From campus rallies to national protests, the union is calling for an emergency funding settlement and a root-and-branch review of how universities are funded.
Solidarity is not just a slogan. It’s working. At Dundee, it forced management to think again. At other institutions, it is giving staff the courage to stand together and say “no more”. Students, too, are showing strong support for their lecturers and support staff. They know that what’s at stake isn’t just jobs, but their education and the future of public higher education.
From the perspective of Solidarity trade union, these strikes are both necessary and justified. Our union stands with university workers. We reject the idea that the only way to fix financial problems is to sack the very people who make universities function. We believe that education is a public good, not a business, and should be funded accordingly.
A Call for Change
The crisis in higher education is a symptom of a wider problem. It’s about what kind of society we want to live in. Do we value education? Do we want secure jobs and thriving communities? Or are we content to let accountants and market forces determine the fate of our universities?
This is not just about resisting cuts. It’s about demanding a new vision for higher education. That means ending the reliance on international student fees, restoring public funding, and ensuring that universities are run for the benefit of staff, students and the wider community – not for profit, prestige projects or inflated salaries at the top.
It’s time for government to act. But it’s also time for us, collectively, to stand together. Staff, students, unions and communities must unite to defend our universities. Because if we don’t, we risk losing them. And with them, the promise of higher education as a path to knowledge, opportunity and social good.
Solidarity works. And we need it now more than ever.
By Maria Camara
